Picture this: Your heart is pounding so hard you can hear it in your ears. Your vision starts to tunnel. A wave of pure panic or white-hot anger is washing over every nerve in your body, and all you can think about is doing something—anything—to make it stop.
We’ve all been there. That moment where one decision could change everything. Maybe it’s reaching for that drink, lashing out at someone you love, or spiraling into a shame cycle that feels impossible to escape.
What if there was a way to survive these moments without making them worse? What if you could actually hack your own nervous system to ride out the storm?
In this episode of The Addicted Mind Plus, hosts Duane and Eric Osterlind break down TIPP—four powerful crisis survival skills from Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) that can literally save your life in these overwhelming moments.
These aren’t feel-good techniques designed to make you happy. They’re emergency tools designed to help you survive a crisis without acting on destructive urges. Each skill works by targeting your body’s nervous system in a specific way, giving you concrete actions to take when your emotions feel completely out of control.
From the mammalian dive reflex that instantly slows your racing heart, to the surprising power of 60-second intense exercise that burns off adrenaline, you’ll learn exactly how to use your body’s own wiring to calm yourself down. The brothers also dive into the science behind why longer exhales activate your “rest and digest” system, and how paired muscle relaxation can release stored tension in minutes.
But here’s the real power: every single time you choose these skills instead of your old destructive behaviors, you’re rewiring your brain. You’re proving to yourself that you can feel intense pain and survive it without escaping into substances or harmful actions.
Whether you’re in recovery from addiction, dealing with trauma, or just tired of making decisions in emotional moments that you later regret, these four simple techniques could be game-changers. The best part? You can start using them today.
Don’t miss the free worksheet download that breaks down each skill with step-by-step instructions you can use in your next crisis moment.
Key Topics
- The TIPP Crisis Survival Method – Four science-backed techniques to survive overwhelming emotions
- Temperature Technique – Using cold water and ice to activate your mammalian dive reflex
- Intense Exercise – How 60 seconds of movement burns off dangerous adrenaline surges
- Paced Breathing – The nervous system hack that only requires controlling your lungs
- Paired Muscle Relaxation – Releasing stored tension through breath and muscle work
- Brain Rewiring Through Crisis Survival – How each successful use builds long-term resilience
- DBT and Distress Tolerance – Understanding the therapy approach that created these tools
Timestamp Guide
[00:01:00] – The Crisis Moment: What overwhelming emotions feel like and why we need survival skills
[00:03:00] – Introduction to DBT: The therapy that balances acceptance and change for real results
[00:05:00] – Distress Tolerance Explained: Why these skills survive crises instead of creating happiness
[00:08:00] – Temperature Technique: Using cold water to activate your biological brake pedal
[00:10:00] – Intense Exercise: How 60 seconds of movement matches and burns off emotional energy
[00:12:00] – Paced Breathing: The only organ you can control that connects both nervous systems
[00:16:00] – Long-term Brain Rewiring: How crisis survival skills build lasting recovery strength
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Supporting Resources:
If you live in California and are looking for counseling or therapy please check out Novus Mindful Life Counseling and Recovery Center
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